Arkansas State Police, Arkansas
End of Watch: Monday, September 12, 2005
Age: 31
Tour of Duty: 8 years
Badge Number: 11
Cause of Death: Vehicle pursuit
Date of Incident: September 11, 2005
Weapon Used: Automobile
Suspect Info: Sentenced to life
Corporal Mark Carthron was struck and killed while retrieving stop sticks he had deployed during a vehicle pursuit on I-40 in Crittenden County.
The suspect's vehicle struck the stop sticks, bringing it to a halt. As Corporal Carthron retrieved the strips, he was struck by a state police vehicle that was involved in the pursuit. Corporal Carthron was transported to a hospital in Memphis, Tennessee, where he succumbed to his injuries at 12:31 am the following morning.
The two suspects involved in the pursuit were driving a stolen vehicle and were wanted for an armed robbery of a service station. The driver of the stolen vehicle was convicted of capital murder and sentenced to life in prison. The passenger was convicted of robbery and theft charges and sentenced to 30 years.
Corporal Carthron had served with the Arkansas State Police for eight years. He is survived by his wife, parents, and brother.